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Gone to Texas: A History of the Lone Star State
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Gone to Texas: A History of the Lone Star State
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by Randolph B. Campbell
Sales Rank : 120850
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Paperback: 512 pages
Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA February 12, 2004
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0195138430
ISBN-13: 978-0195138436
Product Dimensions:
9 x 6.2 x 1.4 inches
Shipping Weight: 1.3 pounds
From Publishers Weekly
Anyone who believes that the history of Texas is written only in tub-thumping braggadocio will quickly be set straight by this superb history of the Lone Star State. A leading historian of Texas (Sam Houston and the American Southwest, etc.), Campbell writes with authority and clarity about one of the nation's most distinctive components. His thoroughly contemporary approach sets early Texas history firmly within the checkered development of Mexico and keeps African-Americans, both slave and free, as well as native tribes at the center of his story. His coverage of such matters as the Texas Revolution, the state's 10 years as an independent republic and the cattle business are models of their kind, and surely no one has written so well while so briefly about how Texas became Southern. Because much of the book is spent on the state's lively political history, however, there may not be enough about Texas society (and certainly not about the state's complex, mixed culture) to satisfy some readers. What's best about the book and what will make it attractive beyond Texas borders is Campbell's healthy skepticism about claims that Texas is unique among the states. He's also critical where criticism is clearly warranted, such as when arraigning "the general lack of concern for civil rights that characterized the state's politics after the 1870s." Campbell shows an unusual ability to judge people in 21st-century terms without losing sight of the long-ago context of their acts. A dividend for readers is the book's unusually good maps and diagrams.
Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information, Inc.
--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
Product Review
"What we finally have in Gone to Texas, then, is a history for a diverse, mature, and self-confident people willing to take a balanced look at their own past. It's a quantum leap forward from T.R. Fehrenbach's classic Lone Star, first published in 1968 . . . "--Texas Books in Review
"The best, most comprehensive account of the Lone Star saga I know of, the place to start if you prefer Texas history to Texas mythology."--Fritz Lanham, Houston Chronicle
"The new standard history of America's most unusual state. It is a balanced account, beautifully written, with verve and wit."--William H. Goetzmann, Jack S. Blanton, Sr. Chair of History and American Studies, University of Texas at Austin
"One of the very best crafted, thoroughly researched, and masterfully presented histories in one volume ever written about this state. It establishes standards of scholarship and literary merit that will endure for years to come. Nothing short of an historical tour de force."--Light T. Cummins, Guy M. Bryan, Jr. Professor of History, Austin College
"Authoritative, gracefully written, and fully conversant with the newest scholarship, this book will henceforth be the standard history of Texas for both academic and general readers--a significant historical and cultural achievement."--John B. Boles, William P. Hobby Professor of History, Rice University
"Eminent scholar Randolph Campbell presents a full length portrait, unsparing of blemishes and scars, that stands alone in its thoroughgoing portrayal of the Lone Star State's luminous past. Campbell's colorful pageant of the winners, sinners, heroes and highbinders who roamed the legendary landscape of that 'other country'--Texas--is a dandy, best of breed. Gone to Texas will inform and excite Texans, while inviting others to go to Texas in the pages of this book."--Kent Biffle, Texana columnist, The Dallas Morning News
"Anyone who believes that the history of Texas is written only in tub-thumping braggadocio will quickly be set straight by this superb history of the Lone Star state. A leading historian of Texas, Campbell writes with authority and clarity about one of the nation's most distinctive components. His thoroughly contemporary approach sets early Texas history firmly within the checkered development of Mexico and keeps African-Americans, both slave and free, as well as native tribes at the center of his story. Hisgth coverage of such matters as the Texas Revolution, theds state's 10 years as an independent republic and the cattle business are models of their kind, and surely no one hase written so well while so briefly about how Texas became Southern. What is best about the book and will make it attractive beyond Texas borders is Campbell's healthynd skepticism about claims that Texas is unique among the states."--Publishers Weekly
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